Build snowmen indoors, no matter the weather! Here’s what you need:
White paper plates
Cookie Cutter Prints With a Spin
In case I haven’t given you enough excuses to go out and buy your dream cookie cutter collection, here’s another way to get your money’s worth. It’s very similar to the cookie cuter prints, but with an extra step. Instead of using tempera paint in your plastic lids, use good old Elmer’s glue. Once the cookie cutters have been dipped in the glue and pressed on the paper, the children can shake colored salt onto the glue. Shake the paper around, and there is a new, colorful, raised print! You could also use glitter in place of or in addition to the colored salt. As the children use several colors on the same page, their prints will take on a cool multi-colored design! Enjoy all the ways you can put these prints to good use!
This activity builds motor control and creativity as the children manipulate the cutters and shakers and create their own designs.
Sandpaper Rubbings- Cookie Cutter Style
I told you I’d be giving you more reasons to justify buying that big set of cookie cutters!
Use the cookie cutters as a template to trace a shape onto the back side of sand paper. Experiment with a variety of grits as the different grits give different textures in the rubbings. Cut out the desired shape. (While I wouldn’t necessarily use your favorite pair, I have heard that cutting sandpaper may actually sharpen your scissors!) Securely glue the shape onto an index card. Place the index cards out with your art trays, paper, and crayons. The children can choose the shapes they want, place the paper on top, and rub with the crayons to transfer the picture onto their papers. The children can place several templates under one paper to create their desired scene.
How to Find Sensory Materials on the Cheap
Photo provided by ba1969.
So you’ve found a way to create a sensory table without a huge hit to your budget. Now how do you keep it filled with a variety of materials without dipping into your rainy day fund? There are plenty of fantastic sensory experiences that you can provide with little or no cost, and most of them are reusable!
Capitalize on Catastrophe. If you’re as lucky as I am, you have a few extra hands in your house that tend to increase the number of spills in your kitchen. I’d be lying if I said all the spills were at the hands of my children. Suffice it to say that between the four of us in our home, the floor has seen its fair share of disaster. When these spills happen in our “dry foods department” and on a large scale, I scoop them up and store them with my sensory supplies rather than throwing them out in the trash can. This is how my popcorn kernel supply began, and has also contributed to my colored rice collection. With flour and salt, I often bag them up and save them for making playdough.
Cookie Cutter Prints
Swords, Capes, and Laser Beams – The Power of Superhero Play
(Find instructions for superhero capes here.)
Superhero play is a theme that appears to enter into the imaginative play of every child at one time or another. In fact, researchers French and Pena (1991) have found that the theme of superhero play has greatly increased since the advent of television, specifically for children in the early childhood years. Other researchers hypothesize that boys in particular have a natural inclination toward “weapon play” that may be genetically tied to the Y chromosome. Whether hero play is brought on by media influences or genetic inclinations, there are many ways children can benefit from this type of play with the proper guidance.
Colorful Rice
My own boys love playing in colored rice! They’re not the only ones though. I had a tray of colored rice sitting on my counter one day when my friend dropped by to visit. During our conversation she began running her fingers through the grains, scooping and dumping as we talked. After a while she said, “There’s just something soothing about this stuff!” It’s true, the feel of rice sliding through your fingers, the soft rustle of it as it falls into a pile, there’s something that just captivates young and old not so young alike. So here’s how to make your own batch of colorful rice.
Pour a tablespoon or so of rubbing alcohol into a quart size ziplock bag. Add food coloring and mix. Pour in about a cup of dry rice, seal the bag, and gently work the bag until the color has been evenly distributed through the rice. Spread the rice out onto a wax paper lined cookie sheet and allow it to dry completely. (Note: You’ll want to wear gloves and an apron to prevent staining while preparing colorful rice!)
Ode to Art Trays
Art trays are fantastic! What’s an art tray you ask? Well, once you use one, you’ll wonder how you ever got along without one. An art tray is any tray you can use to contain mess and define space while the little ones work on their creations. You could get the fantastic ones from Oriental Trading that I have (click on the picture above to link to their site), or use old cookie sheets or plastic trays from your own collection or your favorite thrift store. Just choose something that is leak proof and large enough to contain your general project size, yet small enough to accommodate the space you are using. Set the art trays down, put the supplies on the tray, and let those little fingers go to work!
Iced Shaving Cream
Shaving cream is wonderful! What child can resist plunging ten wriggling fingers into that fantastic, foamy stuff?
Where’s Kitty Hiding?
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